You know what's fun to think about?What current players are going to be like long after they retire.Remembering that Isiah was glib and smarmy as a player, you begin to understand his glibness and smarminess as a coach/exec.We've already seen how an advanced-age LeBron is going to look.Can't you see Gilbert Arenas all avuncular, his goatee flecked with silver, accepting an award at a Wizards' game halftime from the Smithsonian Institution for his ongoing support of hydrostatic studies?Or Sam in a tailored suit, his shiny head worn of wrinkles, yelling at an aging Chris Kaman from the sidelines?Dirk Nowitzki is my favorite because I enjoy thinking about Dirk at 60 years old, skulking around the AA Center.Here's Teutonic Dirk, gray-maned, looking like a Cold War playwright waving to the crowd from Cuban's seats during a timeout.And here's Dirk coaching Team Alemania in the 2032 Olympics.

We don't occultize Dirk the way we do Gilbert, LeBron or Steve Nash. But think about Dirk for a second --- not his court persona, but his actual function.Did you see him with 8:22 left in the second quarter, swiping the defensive rebound, then pushing it up the floor, weaving through the entire Clipper transition defense, then pull up at the arc, stop on a dime, and nail that three? In other words, there's a seven-foot-tall German guy out there, and he's running the floor and handling the ball like an ACC point guard.He's working off the ball like a freaky wing player.You prefer that he play like a good old pivot man?No problem.He's happy to cover you at center on both ends, score in the post, grab ten boards, and a block a shot for you every night.There's a misperception about Dirk that he's a defensive liability.But I haven't seen Dirk play a game in over a year where he wasn't -- at the very worst -- adequate while guarding low.Not one game.His line tonight won't look all that impressive, but Dirk Nowitzki won the game at the 18 minute mark.

There's isn't a lot I have to say about tonight.Evidence, to be instructive, must be examined in context.Watching a set materialize when the team is down 25 and Austin Croshere is in the game doesn't elucidate matters.It's just filler. Vacant blocks of basketball.Flat crowds.Loud substitution horns, but little else to be heard.The first quarter was encouraging because it felt like good old 05-06 Clipper offensive basketball – efficient and steady.I'm becoming more convinced that this is a serious defensive issue the Clippers are facing.Is there anyone who felt that the Clips weren't a Top 10 defensive squad coming into the season?Sure, there have been missed opportunities at the offensive end, but this team is being mauled on their heels.They continue to double in needless situations, further hampering their sorryass weak side defense.Because Kaman is caught away from the basket, whether by instinct or design, chasing Dirk and various others up high, a team like Dallas can pull down 10 offensive boards.It's far too much to enumerate. After a while, you miss what you sat down to see and wonder if you can get some elsewhere.

I spent the latter part of the evening watching the incendiary Wizz-PHX game.It was the sort of ferocious, intense basketball we haven't seen since May.After six weeks of cold leftovers, it was a rush to watch fresh basketball. Gilbert reminded us again how a coin flip can be so cruel.In the waning moments of the game, while the stunned crowd grappled with their first loss in five weeks, all I could muster was jealousy.Not for Gilbert or PHX's choreography or the fans and their win streak, but for basketball that matters.

Posted Wednesday, October 29 at 3:20PM

Good news!

We have launched a new ClipperBlog.com site! You are currently on our old system & are viewing an archived page. We will continue to keep all 670 posts from our first 3 years on this archive site. Soon we will be closing the comments for each of these older posts.

3 piece combo set. 1 vintage PG. A beauty to see. Can't always get into high gear, but still runs with the best of them... most of the time. 1 SG classic in the making. There's still plenty of life on this one, just needs a bit of a tune up. 1 freakish hot rod sf. You won't find one at this price anywhere else.

Price: 1 (or more) sg/sf that has shown good range and the ability to keep up with the best of them. OBO.

Perhaps with all this talk about sam-cat-cory begin traded, the team is not only imploding on the court, but has been imploding in the locker room. All I want for Christmas is for EB to call out all his entire team, by name, number, position, whatever. It should go something like this... "We suck! No one is playing D, especially (name your clippers). No one is hitting open shots (name your clippers). No one is getting me the ball in the post (name your coaching staff, then you clippers)... Did I mention we suck?"

When is Dunleavy going to look in the mirror and ask what he's contributing to this? Why are we averaging 6 fast break points per game? Why are teams lighting us up beyond the three point arc? One of the most frustrating experiences I've had as a Clippers fan was the Toronto game the other night. Why in the world were we double teaming anyone? With 44 seconds left in the game, why didn't Dunleavy order someone to get a quick shot in hopes of a 2-for-one and a guaranteed last shot of the game? His in-game decisions are baffling and frustrating. Only the Clipper brass would sign a coach who's team is headed in a downward spiral to a $22 million extension.

here is another sign of dunlevy's problem --- ``It's baffling,'' coach Mike Dunleavy said. ``We've proven we can defend the last couple of years. Right now, for some reason, our guys are a step slow. It's hard to put your finger on it. We're just searching.'' this was
his quote from the last game. "for some reason"? "it's hard to put your finger on it?" HELLO - you're the coach. put your finger on it... you tell them what the reason is and you fix it. clearly he's a symptom of our problems these days.

Hey. This is Pete, one of the founders of Yardbarker (http://www.yardbarker.com). I couldn't find your email address, but I'd like to speak to you about the linking program that we're doing with a bunch of sports bloggers. It's basically a way for you to get a lot more sports fans reading your best posts. Would you mind contacting me at pete@yardbarker.com so I can email you with more info? Thanks.

It's X'mas time. Let's just be thankful to players & the coaching staff for that wonderful finish we had last season.

This is the same team. We just have to stand by our men during these difficult times. There are many good teams in this league doing worse than our team. Look at Miami Heat for some hope. Pat Riley & Dwayne Wade are much bigger names than Dunleavy & Elton Brand.

After finishing second round playoff run, they didn't rest enough. Russia trip, world cup, marriage, movie venture, who knows what else? They are just a tired bunch of good players.

We cheer them when they play great. And we have to cheer them more when they struggle.

"We haver to cheer them more when they struggle" Are you kidding me? This team should be booed off the court, as many attempted to do in the 3rd Quarter of the Toronto game. If you cheer a team when they play like shit, then you don't really care about them. That's why we get pissed at our kids when they act up.